The Letters of Queen Victoria Volume Iii Part 18

He said Lord Grey's plan[17] had not met with the approbation of the House of Lords. The indignation at Lord John's conduct on all sides was strongly on the increase.

Lord Aberdeen was much affected at having to take leave of us.

VICTORIA R.

[Footnote 17: For concentrating in a single department the business connected with the administration of the Army.]

_Queen Victoria to the Earl of Derby._

WINDSOR CASTLE, _30th January 1855._

The Queen would wish to see Lord Derby at Buckingham Palace (whither she is going for a few hours) to-morrow at half-past eleven.

_Queen Victoria to the Duke of Newcastle._

BUCKINGHAM PALACE, _31st January 1855._

The Queen has just received the Duke of Newcastle's letter.

She readily grants him the permission he asks,[18] and seizes this opportunity of telling him how much she feels for him during this trying time, and what a high sense she shall ever entertain of his loyal, high-minded, and patriotic conduct, as well as of his unremitting exertions to serve his Sovereign and Country.

[Footnote 18: The Duke, in order to refute Lord John Russell, asked leave to state what had pa.s.sed in the Cabinet.]

[Pageheading: INTERVIEW WITH LORD DERBY]

[Pageheading: THE LEADERSHIP]

_Memorandum by Queen Victoria._

WINDSOR CASTLE, _31st January 1855._

We went up to Buckingham Palace and saw Lord Derby at half-past eleven. The Queen informed him of the resignation of the Government, and of her desire that he should try to form a new one. She addressed herself to him as the head of the largest Party in the House of Commons, and which had by its vote chiefly contributed to the overthrow of the Government. Lord Derby threw off this responsibility, saying that there had been no communication with Mr Roebuck, but that his followers could not help voting when Lord John Russell told them on authority that there was the most ample cause for enquiry, and the whole country cried out for it. Moreover, the Government, in meeting the Motion, laid its chief stress upon its implying a want of confidence in the Government--a confidence which they certainly did not enjoy. He owned that his Party was the most compact--mustering about two hundred and eighty men--but he had no men capable of governing the House of Commons, and he should not be able to present an Administration that would be accepted by the country unless it was strengthened by other combinations; he knew that the whole country cried out for Lord Palmerston as the only man fit for carrying on the war with success, and he owned the necessity of having him in the Government, were it even only to satisfy the French Government, the confidence of which was at this moment of the greatest importance; but he must say, speaking without reserve, that whatever the ignorant public might think, Lord Palmerston was totally unfit for the task. He had become very deaf as well as very blind, was seventy-one years old, and ... in fact, though he still kept up his sprightly manners of youth, it was evident that his day had gone by.[19] ... Lord Derby thought, however, he might have the Lead of the House of Commons, which Mr Disraeli was ready to give up to him. For the War Department there were but two men--both very able, but both liable to objections: the first was Lord Grey, who would do it admirably, but with whom he disagreed in general politics, and in this instance on the propriety of the war, which he himself was determined to carry on with the utmost vigour; then came his peculiar views about the Amalgamation of Offices, in which he did not at all agree. The other was Lord Ellenborough, who was very able, and would certainly be very popular with the Army, but was very unmanageable; yet he hoped he could keep him in order. It might be doubtful whether Lord Hardinge could go on with him at the Horse Guards. We agreed in the danger of Lord Grey's Army proposal, and had to p.r.o.nounce the opinion that Lord Ellenborough was almost mad. This led us to a long discussion upon the merits of the conduct of the war, upon which he seemed to share the general prejudices, but on being told some of the real facts and difficulties of the case, owned that these, from obvious reasons, could not be stated by the Government in their defence, and said that he was aware that the chief fault lay at headquarters in the Crimea. Lord Raglan ought to be recalled, as well as his whole staff, and perhaps he could render this less painful to him by asking him to join the Cabinet, where his military advice would be of great value.

[Footnote 19: Lord Derby's judgment was not borne out by subsequent events. Lord Palmerston was Prime Minister when he died on the 18th of October 1865, ten years later. "The half-opened cabinet-box on his table, and the unfinished letter on his desk, testified that he was at his post to the last,"--Ashley's _Life of Lord Palmerston_, vol. ii. p. 273.]

To be able to meet the House of Commons, however, Lord Derby said he required the a.s.sistance of men like Mr Gladstone and Mr S. Herbert, and he was anxious to know whether the Queen could tell him upon what support he could reckon in that quarter. We told him we had reason to believe the Peelites would oppose a Government of Lord John Russell, but were inclined to support one of Lord Derby's; whether they were inclined to join in office, however, appeared very doubtful. The Queen having laid great stress on a good selection for the office of Foreign Affairs, Lord Derby said he would have to return to Lord Malmesbury, who, he thought, had done well before, and had now additional experience.

Should he not be able to obtain strength from the Peelites, he could not be able to form a creditable Government; he must give up the task, and thought the Queen might try some other combinations with Lord John Russell or Lord Lansdowne, etc.

He did not think a reconstruction of the old Government would be accepted by the country; however, whatever Government was formed to carry on the war, should not only not be opposed by him, but have his cordial support, provided it raised no question of general const.i.tutional importance.

Should all attempts fail, he would be ready to come forward to the rescue of the country with such materials as he had, but it would be "a desperate attempt."

Lord Derby returned a little before two from Lord Palmerston, to whom he had gone in the first instance. Lord Palmerston was ready to accept the Lead of the House of Commons, and acknowledged that the man who undertook this could not manage the War Department besides. He undertook to sound Mr Gladstone and Mr S. Herbert, but had, evidently much to Lord Derby's surprise, said that it must be a coalition, and not only the taking in of one or two persons, which does not seem to suit Lord Derby at all--nor was he pleased at Lord Palmerston's suggestion that he ought to try, by all means, to retain Lord Clarendon at the Foreign Office. Lord Palmerston was to sound the Peelites in the afternoon, and Lord Derby is to report the result to the Queen this evening.

VICTORIA R.

[Pageheading: LORD CLARENDON]

_The Earl of Derby to Queen Victoria._

ST JAMES' SQUARE, _31st January 1855._ (9:30 P.M.)

Lord Derby, with his humble duty, hastens to submit to your Majesty the answer which he has this moment received from Viscount Palmerston to the communication which he made to him this morning by your Majesty's command. Lord Derby has not yet received from Mr Sidney Herbert and Mr Gladstone the answers referred to in Lord Palmerston's letter; but, from the tenor of the latter, he fears there can be no doubt as to their purport. With respect to Lord Clarendon, Lord Derby is fully sensible of the advantage which might accrue to your Majesty's service from the continuance in office of a Minister of great ability, who is personally cognizant of all the intricate negotiations and correspondence which have taken place for the last two years; and neither personally nor politically would he antic.i.p.ate on the part of his friends, certainly not on his own part, any difficulty under existing circ.u.mstances, in co-operating with Lord Clarendon; but the present political relations between Lord Clarendon and Lord Derby's friends are such that, except upon a special injunction from your Majesty, and under your Majesty's immediate sanction, he would not be justified in making any overtures in that direction.[20] Should Lord Derby receive any communication from Mr Gladstone or Mr. Sidney Herbert before morning, he will send it down to your Majesty by the earliest opportunity in the morning. Lord Derby trusts that your Majesty will forgive the haste in which he writes, having actually, at the moment of receiving Lord Palmerston's answer, written a letter to say that he could not longer detain your Majesty's messenger. Lord Derby will take no farther step until he shall have been honoured by your Majesty's farther commands.

The above is humbly submitted by your Majesty's most dutiful Servant and Subject,

DERBY.

[Pageheading: LORD DERBY'S REFUSAL]

_Memorandum by the Prince Albert._

_1st February 1855._

Lord Derby came down here at eleven o'clock, and brought with him two letters he had received from Mr Gladstone and Mr Sidney Herbert, who both declared their willingness to give Lord Derby's Government an independent support, but on mature consideration their impossibility to take office in his Administration. Lord Derby said, as to the independent support, it reminded him of the definition of an independent Member of Parliament, viz. one that could not be depended upon. Under the circ.u.mstances, he would not be able to form such an Administration as could effectively carry on the Government.

[Footnote 20: Although opposed to the ordinary procedure of party government, there were recent precedents for such overtures being made. When the Whigs displaced Peel in 1846, Lord John Russell attempted to include three of the outgoing Ministers in his Cabinet, and on the formation of the Coalition Ministry, negotiations were on foot to retain Lord St. Leonards on the woolsack.]

He thought that Lord Palmerston had at first been willing to join, but it was now evident that the three letters had been written in concert.[21]

[Footnote 21: Lord Palmerston wrote that, upon reflection, he had come to the conclusion that he would not, by joining the Government, give to it that stability which Lord Derby antic.i.p.ated. He, however, gave the promise of his support to any Government which would carry on the war with energy and vigour, and maintain the alliances which had been formed.]

He was anxious to carry any message to any other statesman with which the Queen might wish to entrust him. This the Queen declined, with her best thanks. He then wanted to know what statement Lord Aberdeen would make to-night in the House, stating it to be very important that it should not appear that the Administration had gone from Lord Aberdeen through any other hands than the ones which should finally accept it.

It would be well known that he had been _consulted_ by the Queen, but there was no necessity for making it appear that he had undertaken to form an Administration. The fact was, that he had consulted none of his Party except Mr Disraeli, and that his followers would have reason to complain if they thought that he had put them altogether out of the question. We told him that we did not know what Lord Aberdeen meant to say, but the best thing would be on all accounts to state exactly the truth as it pa.s.sed.

After he had taken leave of the Queen with reiterated a.s.surances of grat.i.tude and loyalty, I had a further long conversation with him, pointing out to him facts with which he could not be familiar, concerning our Army in the Crimea, our relations with our Ally, negotiations with the German Courts, the state of public men and the Press in this country, which convinced me that this country was in a crisis of the greatest magnitude, and the Crown in the greatest difficulties, which could not be successfully overcome unless political parties would show a little more patriotism than hitherto.

They behaved a good deal like his independent Member of Parliament, and tried to aggravate every little mishap in order to get Party advantages out of it. I attacked him personally upon his ...

opposition to the Foreign Enlistment Bill, and pointed to the fact that the French were now obtaining the services of that very Swiss Legion we stood so much in need of. His defence was a mere Parliamentary dialectic, accusing the clumsy way in which Ministers had introduced their Bill, but he promised to do what he could to relieve the difficulties of the country. In conclusion I showed him, under injunctions of secrecy, the letter I had received from Count Walewski, which showed to what a state of degradation the British Crown had been reduced by the efforts on all sides for Party objects to exalt the Emperor Napoleon, and make his will and use the sole standard for the English Government.[22]

[Footnote 22: This curious letter of the Count stated in effect that the alliance of England and France, and the critical circ.u.mstances of the day, made Lords Palmerston and Clarendon indispensable members of any Ministry that might be formed.]